Courses, Workshops, Education
Workshops for 2008
Our workshops take the format of demonstration, talks, discussion and hands-on practical where possible. Lunch - emphasising herbs and edible plants of course! - is often included on full day events, and a visit to Plants with Purpose Nursery where appropriate. You will always get a course booklet, and where applicable the products of your endeavours!
Following market research, we have decided to hold the following workshops in 2008. Other dates may be available, and venues /times are correct as far as we know
April 5th:
Beginning with Herbs: Propagation, Cultivation, Harvesting, Using and Preserving
In the morning everything you need to know about choosing, cultivating, propagating and preserving herbs from scratch, and in the afternoon, how to use them - from cooking to cosmetics, with domestic purposes thrown in!
Tutors: Margaret Lear (Plants with Purpose) and Cath MacGregor (Heart of Scotland Herb Society)
A full day course which may be divided into 2 half day events, at the Birnam Institute, Perthshire, £50 (includes lunch) or 2x £25
May 3rd:
Wild Food: The Spring and Summer Forager!
Late Spring is the busy season for foragers! Combining foraging field trips with cookery and science for an entertaining gourmet guide to wild plant food.
A full day, field-based course inc. transport based at Bankfoot Church Hall £50
July 12th:
Herbs: Hidden Helpers in the Organic Garden!
Companion planting, compost and more besides - a half-day bonanza for gardeners who like to make their plants work for them.
This workshop will be based at the Birnam Institute, Perthshire and will be run for and by the Perthshire Organic Gardeners Group. There will be a small charge for non-members; please contact uson 01738 787278 for details.
September 13th:
Gardening for Wildlife - from Design to Maintenance!
A full day, practical course on the benefits and challenges of welcoming wildlife, and how to achieve an attractive garden while filling it with what may seem to others like weeds and rampant vegetation!
Based at Bankfoot Church Hall £40
October 11th:
Wild Food - the Autumn Forager!
This full day workshop was very popular in 2007, and may repeat. Focuses on fruit, nuts, fungi and wild roots and combines foraging trips and preservation ideas with identification help and experimental cookery.
Based at Bankfoot NEW Church Hall. Cost inc. transport £50
BANKFOOT NEW CHURCH, WHICH WE HOPE WILL BE COMPLETED BY SEPTEMBER 08, IS A BEAUTIFUL MODERN COMMUNITY FACILITY WITH A LOW CARBON FOOTPRINT - POWERED BY WIND AND OTHER RENEWABLE ENERGIES.
November 22nd (provisional - other dates may be available)
Herbs For Christmas!
A festive workshop of wassails and wonder, bringing the herbal harvest to Yuletide with everything from decorations and folklore traditions to stuffing the turkey. Something for everyone!
Tutors: Margaret Lear (Plants with Purpose) and Cath MacGregor (Heart of Scotland Herb Society)
Venue to be arranged; cost £40, inc handbook.
Lunch not included but likely to be plenty of sampling!
ALL WORKSHOPS START AT 10am AND FINISH BETWEEN 4.30 and 5pm.
IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN ANY OF THESE COURSES AND WOULD LIKE TO RESERVE A PLACE OR RECEIVE A FLYER WHEN AVAILABLE, EMAIL US AT mail@plantswithpurpose.co.uk OR PHONE MARGARET ON 01738 787278
PLACES MAY BE PURCHASED ONLINE NEARER THE TIME IN OUR ONLINE STORE, WHERE MORE INFORMATION WILL BE AVAILABLE.
AND FINALLY for the foragers among you......
Are you up for a 5 day "Fungi and Food" trip to Southern Bohemia? If there is enough demand (minimum 10), we will organise an autumn break in conjunction with our friends at Avanti Travel (www.avantitravel.cz) of Bechyne in the Czech republic, to explore the truly awesome fungi-filled woods of Bohemia, sample the product, and, like St. Vaclav in the carol, gather winter fuel..... optional excursions, fabulous beer, and the best foraging we have come across at any rate. This is at the pipeline stage but if you might be interested DO LET US KNOW!! we will put you on the mailing list and send more details when we have them
Talks and Services to Interest Groups/organisations
If there’s one thing I like as much as growing and selling useful plants its talking about them. Formal lectures are not my style, and I can guarantee an interactive and informative experience with as much chance as the topic allows for hands on activity and audience participation. If your organisation would like to arrange a talk, demonstration or workshop, here are some of the topics I speak on regularly:
- Subversive Herbs – amazing and forgotten uses for overlooked plants
- Gardening for Wildlife – and just what wildlife were you wanting!?
- Designing a Container Garden and
The Edible Container Garden
- Designing Unfashionable (but down-to-Earth) Gardens
- A Taste of Honey – The role of Honeybees in our gardens
- Pondering Pollination – the fantastic relationship between flowers and bees
- Dancing in the Dark - 25 Incredible Things about Honeybees – guaranteed to astonish)
- Waste not, Want not – composting, recycling and why we need worms in the garden)
- Organic Gardening and Growing (any aspect you like)
- The Magic of Trees – an illustrated talk on the beauty and folklore of our woodlands
I am also obviously more than happy to speak about any aspect of herbs in cultivation, design, cooking and eating, harvest and preservation etc.
Fees: £20 standard rate per evening / 1 hour talk+question time; plus expenses which will vary according to distance.
Journalism
I write regularly for special interest publications and gardening magazines. Contact me if I can help you.
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